Air-cooling and aeration system for ship&#39;s cabins and the like



Sept. 3, 1963 D. TRUCCHl 3,102,397

AIR-COOLING AND AERATION SYSTEM FOR SHIP'S CABINS AND THE LIKE Filed March 16, 1962 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Inventor DANTE. TRUCCH! A ttorneyB Sept. 3, 1963 D. TRUCCHI AIR-COOLING AND AERATION SYSTEM FOR SHIP'S CABINS AND THE LIKE 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed March 16, 1962 111:1 IIIIIIII'IIIIIIIII Inventor DANTE TRUCCHl B MM and M Attorneys I United States Patent 3,102,397 AIR-CGOLING AND AERATIUN SYSTEM FOR SHIPS CABINS AND THE LIKE flante Trucchi, 44 Via Avie, Genoa, Italy Filed Mar. 16, 1962, Ser. No. 180,300 Claims priority, application Italy Mar. 18, 1961 2 Claims. (Cl. 62-240) s This invention relates to an air-cooling and renewing unit briefly called air conditioner, for ships cabins and other ship enclosures provided with scuttles and aims to provide simple and reliable means for comfort cooling of the cabin air by employing a simplified compression and direct expansion system of refrigeration.

The object of the invention is to provide a direct expansion air cooler which may be readily installed in a ships cabin or other ships enclosure and which occupies very little space and permits of cooling the air in the cabin or like ships enclosure (and which for simplicity will be called cabin) and at the same time permits its aeration.

According to the invention this end is attained by constructing an air-refrigerating and air-renewing unit comprising a cabinet and a case connected together by means of two pipes, the cabinet being fitted within the cabin and containing a refrigerant compressor, a direct expansion evaporator for cold generation and a fan for. circulating the cabin air across the evaporator while the case, which is usually cylindrical, is adapted to be fitted in a scuttle frame instead of the scuttle glass and contains the refrigerant condenser and a fan for refrigerating said condenser by blowing therethrough outside air, said case being also provided with a valve-controlled opening in communication with the interior of the cabin and through which the cabin air may be gradually evacuated and renewed.

The invention will be better understood by the following specification, referring to the accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIGURE 1 diagrammatically shows a comfort air-cooling and air-renewing system according to the invention and comprising a case fitted in a ships scuttle frame (shown in section) and a cabinet to be fitted in a ships cab-in;

FIGURE 2 is a vertical, somewhat enlarged section through the cabinet; said section being drawn along line 11- 11 of FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 3 is an enlarged rear view of the case inserted in a scuttle frame;

FIGURE 4 is an enlarged longitudinal section on line IV-IV of the case shown in FIGURE 3, and

FIGURE 5 is an enlarged view of the air valve fitted at the rear of the case shown in FIGURE 3.

With reference to FIGURES 1 through 3 of the drawings, the air conditioner comprises a cabinet E to be fit ted as a piece of furniture in the cabin and a substantially cylindrical case C to be inserted in a scuttle frame F which is fastened, as by eye bolts B, to a scuttle opening of the ship S, as clearly shown in FIGURE 1. The case C is provided with handles H for inserting and taking same out of frame F.

The cabinet E has a rear opening 13 usually protected by a wire mesh or a perforated plate and a louvered front opening 12. Inside the cabinet there is mounted the compressor 17 of a refrigerating unit whose suction side is connected by means of a pipe 6 to one end of a refrigerating coil or evaporator 9 whilethe pressure side of said compressor is connected by means of a pipe 8 to the top end of the condenser coil 15 (FIG- URE 4) mounted in a sleeve 14 fitted at the open front or outside end 22 of the case C inserted in the scuttle 3,102,393 Patented Sept. 3, 1963 frame F and projecting outwardly of the ships plating S. A section of the pipe 6 coming from the outlet or evaporating end of the evaporator 9 and a section of the pipe 7 connected to the lower or discharge end of the condenser 15 run parallelly through a heat exchanger 10 in which the compressed hot refrigerant vapors are cooled by the cold refrigerant vapors coming from the evaporator 9.

It may be mentioned that although the case C and cabinet E are shown in FIGUREl substantially at the same height, in practice the case C containing the condenser 15 is fitted at a substantially higher level than the cabinet E, so that the condensed liquid refrigerant may readily flow from the lower end of the condenser 15 through a conventional expansion valve 24 into the evaporator 9.

This is apparent when considering that the case C is inserted in a scuttle frame F and the cabinet E is placed on the floor.

Within the cabinet E a power-driven fan 11 is mounted, which sucks warm cabin air across the cabinet opening 13, causes same to lick the cold evaporator 9 and discharge same, conveniently cooled and somewhat dried into the same cabin. The condensed lair moisture drips into suitable collecting trays 20 and 21 and may be evacuated from time to time.

As shown in FIGURE 4, the sleeve member '14 in which the refrigerant condenser 15 is mounted is spaced from the surrounding peripheral walls of the case C, so as to leave a gap 18. Within the said case C a fan or blower 16 is mounted in a housing having its discharge mouth connected to the said condenser-containing sleeve 14, which thus constitutes a kind of extension of said airdischarge mouth. As it is apparent from the drawing, the blower housing 23 is mounted with clearance within said case C, so :as to leave all around a free space.

The rear end of the case C is closed and is provided with an air valve 19 (FIGURES 3 to S), which opens at the interior of the cabin.

The condenser ends are connected by means of pipings 7 and 8 to the pressure side of the compressor 17 through evaporator 9 and a conventional expansion valve 24, in the inlet side of the evaporator 9, both mounted in the cabinet E.

The operation of the thus described section of the air conditioner is apparent:

The compressed refrigerant vapors flow into the condenser 15 where they are cooled by a powerful stream of outside air admitted through the open front end of the case-which may be protected by a wire gauze or a perforated plateand along the gap 18 and is blown through the sleeve 14 across said condenser 15. A part of the air however may be sucked from the interior of the cabin through the rear valve 19, when same is conveniently opened in order to renew the air in the cabin.

\From the foregoing it is apparent that very simple and reliable twoarts unit has been devised which is very compact and permits of cooling the air of a cabin or the like by circulating same across a cabinet containing a direct-expansion refrigerant evaporator for cold generation and at the same time permits of gradually renewing the cabin air by utilising the same blower 16 which serves for cooling the refrigerant condenser, the said air renewal being performed by sucking a part of the air to be blown against said condenser from the interior of the cabin and replacing same by fresh air which may be allowed to flow into the same cabin across a suitable aerating opening (not shown) of conventional design, or even through existing untight joints.

Of course, means may be provided for conveniently humidifying the cooled air; furthermore it is apparent that the evaporator 9 and the condenser 15 are shown very diagrammatically and that they will be provided with heat-absorbing and dissipating fins.

I claim:

1. In a comfort air-cooling and renewing unit particularly adapted for a small ship enclosure such as a cabin provided with a scuttle, the combination of a cabinet to be placed within the cabin and a case adapted to be fitted in a scuttle frame in place of the glass, said cabinet having two openings and containing a compressor for refrigerant having a suction side and a pressure side, an expansion valve, a direct expansion evaponator, a duct connecting one end of the evaporator through the expansion valve to the compressor, a conduit connecting the other end of the evaporator to the suction side of said compressor, and a power-driven fan sucking air through one of said cabinet openings and discharging same through the other of said cabinet openings, said openings being so .arranged'as to cause the air flow across the interior of the cabinet to wipe said evaporator acting as cooling coil, and the said case of the unit cornprising a tubular hollow body adapted to be inserted in a ships scuttle frame, said body being open at its front end to be supported outside of the cabin and closed .at its rear end, an air valve on said rear end (adjustable to admit more or less air therethrough into said hollow body, a sleeve mounted within the body near the front so as to leave a continuous gap between it and the surrounding wall of the body, a substantially upright condenser coil mounted Within said sleeve, and a powerdriven biower in the body for sucking outside air through the said gap and, when said air valve is open, also from said cabin and discharging same to the exterior through said sleeve and across said con-denser coil, said cabinet and coil having refrigerant conduits arranged in part outside of said hollow body and said cabinet including a first pipe connecting the top end of said condenser coil to the pressure side of said compressorvwithin the said cabinet and a second pipe connecting the lower side of said condenser coil to the expansion valve within said cabinet.

2. A comfort air-cooling and renewing unit according to claim 1, wherein a section of the said conduit leading from the evaporator to the suction side of said compressor and a section of the said pipe connecting the condenser coil to the pressure side of the compressor are arranged in heat-exchange relation.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 

1. IN A COMFORT AIR-COOLING AND RENEWING UNIT PARTICULARLY ADAPTED FOR A SMALL SHIP ENCLOSURE SUCH AS A CABIN PROVIDED WITH A SCUTTLE, THE COMBINATION OF A CABINET TO BE PLACED WITHIN THE CABIN AND A CASE ADAPTED TO BE FITTED IN A SCUTTLE FRAME IN PLACE OF THE GLASS, SAID CABINET HAVING TWO OPENINGS AND CONTAINING A COMPRESSOR FOR REFRIGERANT HAVING A SUCTION SIDE AND A PRESSURE SIDE, AN EXPANSION VALVE, A DIRECT EXPANSION EVAPORATOR, A DUCT CONNECTING ONE END OF THE EVAPORATOR THROUGH THE EXPANSION VALVE TO THE COMPRESSOR, A CONDUIT CONNECTING THE OTHER END OF THE EVAPORATOR TO THE SUCTION SIDE OF SAID COMPRESSOR, AND A POWER-DRIVEN FAN SUCKING AIR THROUGH ONE OF SAID CABINET OPENINGS AND DISCHARGING SAME THROUGH THE OTHER OF SAID CABINET OPENINGS, SAID OPENINGS BEING SO ARRANGED AS TO CAUSE THE AIR FLOW ACROSS THE INTERIOR OF THE CABINET TO WIPE SAID EVAPORATOR ACTING AS COOLING COIL, AND THE SAID CASE OF THE UNIT COMPRISING A TUBULAR HOLLOW BODY ADAPTED TO BE INSERTED IN A SHIP''S SCUTTLE FRAME, SAID BODY BEING OPEN AT ITS FRONT END TO BE SUPPORTED OUTSIDE OF THE CABIN AND CLOSED AT ITS REAR END, AN AIR VALVE ON SAID REAR END ADJUSTABLE TO ADMIT MORE OR LESS AIR THERETHROUGH INTO SAID HOLLOW BODY, A SLEEVE MOUNTED WITHIN THE BODY NEAR THE FRONT 